Nepal Police Arrest Man for Sending 5 Million Mass SMS Calling for Restoration of Constitutional Monarchy
Umesh Dhakal
KNA- Canberra
Report from:
Kathmandu, Nepal —
Nepal Police have arrested a 34-year-old man for allegedly sending five million mass text messages calling for the abolition of the country’s federal system and the establishment of a “sanatan constitutional monarchy.”
The suspect, identified by police as Sedhai, a resident of Chitwan, was arrested on Tuesday night from Hattisar, Kathmandu, according to Superintendent of Police Kaji Kumar Acharya of the Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office.
Police said Sedhai, who is involved in the automobile business, used Nepal Telecom’s gateway system to send the messages through an “AT Alert” service. During interrogation, he reportedly admitted to sending the messages to approximately five million people nationwide.
Authorities allege that the mass messaging campaign caused public fear and unrest. The text message stated that Nepal’s long-term problems could only be resolved by dismantling the provincial structure and establishing a constitutional monarchy with a directly elected system.
The message also urged recipients to gather at Baluwatar at noon on Poush 30 (mid-January), an area designated as a restricted zone. Police said the call to assemble indefinitely in a prohibited area raised serious public order concerns.
SP Acharya stated that Sedhai is being investigated under charges related to offenses against public interest. Further investigation is ongoing.
